Reflection on my micro teaching

It can be seen very often that the new teachers put out their 12-15 hours daily in their profession and it happens especially in the first year of their profession. The hard work which these teachers devote to their work and profession is just for the future of the millions of the budding servicemen and the entrepreneur who are the future of the country.

The main and the primary step in their teaching are to make a lesson plan because in any field whether it is a rocket science or any other profession, planning is the primary step. Lesson plans depends on the previous lesson because it is an ongoing procedure and this is very much difficult to plan the lesson in advance for the future.

After having my micro teaching, i feel that preparing a lesson plan is not an easy stuff. In the preparation of lesson plan, it needs skill in selecting the educational aims and learning outcomes intended for a lesson and how best to achieve these. While during lesson presentation, the skills needed is engaging pupils in the learning experiences particularly in relation to the quality of the instruction.

During my micro teaching, I used a lot of strategies such as demonstration, discussion, lecture method, problem solving and experimentation. However, the number of students in a group is too large. So, in my next teaching, I will pay more effort in designing the size of the students. For me, our micro teaching is considered good as this is our first time. Nevertheless, the set induction is attractive as we used discrepant event. During my teaching, I would say that being a teacher not an easy job as you need to plan well. I hope I could be an innovative teacher as when I think back what has my science teacher taught me in 5 years back, I can't even remember their name. This make me feel that teacher plays an important role to students in choosing their careers. So, I wish I could be a good teacher in future.

Teaching Strategies

Lecture Method

• Lecture - Oral presentations intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject
• Lecture method is advised to be done inductively so as to encourage 2 ways interaction

Tips for lecturing

• Be prepared
• Announce objective, sequence points
• Start with a problem and interweave evidence or examples to lead to a conclusion
• Eye contact, body language, movement
• Vary your tone of voice
• Design lecture in 15-20 minute blocks
• Use of pauses during the lecture for direct oral questioning

Discussion Method

• Most researchers agree that students learn content best and retain it longer when actively involved in small groups (Tinto, 1992; Chickering and Gamson, 1991; Johnson, 1991)
• Examples of Structures: jigsaw, numbered heads together, round robin

Tips for discussion method

• Keep the discussions moving at a reasonable pace
• Explain how groups will operate and how students will be graded
• Encourages all students to participate
• Assign tasks which allow for a fair division of work
• Create tasks that require interdependence
• Change groups throughout semester
• Be conscious of size
• Allow some testing and test preparation in groups
• Try group competition

Role-playing Method

Role playing, a derivative of a sociodrama, is a method for exploring the issues involved in complex social situations. It may be used for the training of professionals or in a classroom for the understanding of literature, history, and even science.

Role playing as simulation

Illustration of real-life or hypothetical situations that help learners to visualize concepts and principles

Demonstration Method

A concrete experience that can be considered as advance organizer for structuring subsequent information and activities into a meaningful, instructional framework for students.

Functions of Demonstration

• Initiating thinking
• Illustrating a concept, principle or point
• Answering a question
• Reviewing Ideas
• Introducing or concluding units

Tips for demonstrating

• Materials and equipment should be planned and collected well in advance of the actual presentation
• Ensuring visibility
• Focusing student attention
• Trying out the demonstration before hand

Field Work

Offers authentic learning experiences for students, giving them greater understanding of the natural and technological world in which they live in

Most enjoyable and memorable of academic experiences for students

Importance in planning a field trip

The curriculum: Teacher must examine the curriculum and decide which experiences relate directly to the course

Surveying possible sites: Planning by making a list of field sites, beginning in the school, moving to the school grounds, streets, neighborhoods, community services, rural areas, small business, museums, small manufacturing plants and large industrial facilities

Administrative policy: Advisable to consult with the school administration so that teacher is informed about school policy

Laboratory Work

What is Laboratory Work ?

Laboratory work engages students in finding out and learning how through first hand experiences. It permits students to plan and participate in investigations or to take part in activities that will help them to improve their technical laboratory.

Generally, laboratory work can be used to promote the following learning outcomes:

1. Attitudes toward science
2. Scientific attitudes
3. Scientific inquiry
4. Conceptual development
5. Technical skills

In 1960s, the curriculum reform project were very laboratory oriented while in 1990s, it emphasize scientific literacy and stress the need for students to have experiences that permit them to adapt to a changing world.

Actually, the ultimate success of a laboratory work lies with science teachers who determine the frequency, importance, and purpose of this enterprise in a science course. For example, if a teacher believe that laboratory work is important, then the chances are good that students will frequently engage in meaningful firsthand experiences. If a teacher believes that the function of a science program is to transmit knowledge, then the laboratory will serve only to verify knowledge.

Approaches to Laboratory Work

Most approaches can be classified into five categories:

1. Science process skill
2. Deduction or verification
3. Inductive
4. Technical Skill
5. Problem Solving

Science Process Skill Laboratory

Since the major purpose for including laboratory work is to develop in students a sense for the nature of science. This aim requires that students use inquiry skills to engage in investigation. Some of the mental processes associated with science and, in particular, with laboratory work are often referred to as science process skills.

Deductive or Verification Laboratory

The purpose of this type of laboratory is to confirm concepts, principles and laws that have been addressed during classroom discussion and reading, as well as for students to gain firsthand experiences with them.

Many concepts, principles and laws can be best developed through a deductive approach, whereby they are first discussed by the teacher, then followed by a laboratory activity to verify the relationships.

Inductive Laboratory

The inductive laboratory is the opposite of the deductive laboratory. The inductive laboratory provides students with opportunity to develop concepts, principles, and laws through firsthand experiences before these ideas are discussed in the classroom.

Although science teachers frequently use deductive laboratories, they should also use inductive laboratories to help students acquire fundamental science concepts and principles.

Technical Skill Laboratory

Science educators have placed too little emphasis upon developing proficiency in laboratory skills and techniques. Since laboratory work often relies on students’ abilities to manipulate equipment and techniques; therefore, the emphasis of some laboratories should involve the development and use of these skills and techniques.

Examples : Using a analytic balance, dissecting a frog or a worm, focusing a microscope.

Furthermore, psychomotor and mental practices are beneficial in improving the accuracy and precision of a student’s laboratory measurements.

Problem Solving Laboratory

Problem Solving laboratory give the opportunity to students in order to identify a problem, design procedures, collect information, organize data, and report findings. This type of laboratory investigation can involve authentic inquiry experiences for students. Furthermore, students are involved in organizing their own learning, which may incline a better understanding towards the experiment and motivate students in learning.

Teaching Approaches

Basically, teaching of science can be divided to two basic approaches; namely the inductive and deductive approach. The inductive approach provides students with learning situations in which they can discover a concept or principles. In deductive approach on the other hand, a concept or principle is given and discussed, followed by experiences to further illustrate the idea presented.

Inquiry Learning

Inquiry based learning is mainly involving learners and leading them to understand. Inquiry here implies on the possessing skills and attitude of learners, which allows them to ask questions about new resolutions and issues while they are gaining new knowledge. Generally, inquiry refers to the act of finding out and focuses on the desire to answer a question or to know more about a situation. In science, the act of finding out involves scientific investigation.

Constructivism

Constructivism is a philosophy of learning founded on the premise that, by reflecting on our experiences, we construct our own understanding of the world we live in. Each of us generates our own “rules” and “mental models,” which we use to make sense of our experiences. Learning, therefore, is simply the process of adjusting our mental models to accommodate new experiences.

The purpose of learning is for an individual to construct his or her own meaning, not just memorize the “right” answers and regurgitate someone else meaning. Since education is inherently interdisciplinary, the only valuable way to measure learning is to make the assessment part of the learning process, ensuring it provides students with information on the quality of their learning.

Contextual Learning

According to Hull's (1993) definition of contextual learning, learning occurs only when learners connect information to their own frame of reference:

"According to contextual learning theory, learning occurs only when students (learners) process new information or knowledge in such a way that it makes sense to them in their frame of reference (their own inner world of memory, experience, and response). This approach to learning and teaching assumes that the mind naturally seeks meaning in context--that is, in the environment where the person is located--and that it does so through searching for relationships that make sense and appear useful." (p. 41)

Science, Technology and Society

Science and technology is the best thing society could ever ask for. Since the industrial revolution in the 18th century science has been in progress. Some sectors that have been boosted by science and technology are energy, physical sciences, information and communication. The society has greatly gained with the invention of technology.

Infrastructure in the society has grown with the help of science and technology. Modes of transport like electronic railway lines were realized and these actually benefited the society by offering them a better means of transport. In the past, almost everything was analog but thanks to the science and technology we are now being digitalized by the day. The invention of the telephone and radio services has broadened human communication.

Without society then there would be no science and technology and that is why the invention of certain tools and equipment have helped achieve big things. Society cannot do without the industries we have today. The society needs science and technology. The creation of computers is work of art by individuals was a milestone that would come a long way in helping the society. A computer helps us to leverage ourselves by gaining valuable information that we can use to enrich our lives. The impact of science and technology can seriously be recognized.

Mastery Learning

Mastery learning proposes that all children can learn when provided with the appropriate learning conditions in the classroom.

The application of mastery learning is based on Benjamin Bloom’s Learning for Mastery model, with refinements made by Block. Mastery learning is predominantly a group-based, teacher-paced instructional approach, in which students learn by cooperating with their classmates. However, some mastery learning strategies require students to work independently, rather than with classmates.

Two problems often arise with mastery learning.

· First, grouping and scheduling may become difficult. Teachers often find it easier to force people to work at a constant pace and to complete tasks at a predictable rate than to permit wide variations in activities within a class.

· Second, while slow learners spend extra time on minimum standards, the faster learners may be forced to wait when they could be progressing to higher levels of achievement.